Houston Texans trade Charles Omenihu as they keep ‘rebuilding roster’

Some of the trades made by Houston Texans general manager Nick Caserio have made some sense, but this recent trade reported on Tuesday before the NFL trade deadline can make a person wonder.

The trade involves sending pass rusher Charles Omenihu to the San Francisco 49ers for a “future late-rounder,” according to NFL Insider Ian Rapoport. Omenihu has just eight solo tackles, with no sacks this season in six games. In 35 career games with the Texans, Omenihu has collected 27 solo tackles and seven tackles.

Omenihu was drafted by the previous regime of the Texans, being the 161st overall pick (a fifth round choice) back in 2019. Below is the tweet by Rapoport discussing the Texans’ trade of the young pass rusher Omenihu:

Houston Texans: Did they give Charles Omenihu enough time?

Did the Houston Texans give up on Omenihu after less than three full seasons with the franchise? Was he traded because Caserio didn’t draft him, or are the Texans making sure they finish with one of the worst records in the league? After eight games in the ’21 NFL season the Texans are 1-7 overall with seven straight losses, with their play getting worse each week.

From this perspective this isn’t a great trade because there is so much potential with the third-year pass rusher Omenihu, and the Texans were too impatient with his progression. Gaining only a late-round pick for him isn’t that great of a trade. The only way this trade really does anything is if the pick gained from the 49ers is used in another deal, or the Texans find a solid player in the late rounds.

Sure the numbers weren’t that great for Omenihu in his tenure with Houston, but in all honestly whose numbers are good this season with this team? They are 1-7 for a reason, so when they make a trade the players traded really haven’t been that big of playmakers with this team.

Being someone who wanted to see Omenihu succeed with Houston during his career it is tough to see him traded, but Caserio and the decision makers had different ideas for the pass rusher, and now he’ll have to gain that success elsewhere.

We all know this is a process with the rebuild of the Houston roster, and since Caserio has taken over he’s all but revamped the roster, getting things ready to build the team in his vision.

Just like the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers said when they were rebuilding their roster, “Trust the Process,” which is what all Texans fans need to do. That said, trading a young player like Omenihu for a late-round pick does make one question what that process is.